Several years ago, a
friend of mine and her husband were invited to spend the weekend at the
husband’s employer’s home. My friend, Arlene, was nervous about the weekend. The
boss was very wealthy, with a fine home on the waterway, and cars costing more
than her house.

The first day and
evening went well, and Arlene was delighted to have this rare glimpse into how
the very wealthy live. The husband’s employer was quite generous as a host, and
took them to the finest restaurants. Arlene knew she would never have the
opportunity to indulge in this kind of extravagance again, so she as enjoying
herself immensely.

As the three of them
were about to enter an exclusive restaurant that evening, the boss was walking
slightly ahead of Arlene and her husband. He stopped suddenly, looking down on
the pavement for a long, silent moment.

Arlene wondered if she
was supposed to pass him. There was nothing on the ground except a single
darkened penny that someone had dropped, and a few cigarette butts. Still
silent, the man reached down and picked up the penny.

He held it up and
smiled, then put it in his pocket as if he had found a great treasure. How
absurd! What need did this man have for a single penny?

Why would he even take
the time to stop and pick it up?

Throughout dinner, the
entire scene nagged at her. Finally, she could stand it no longer. She causally
mentioned that her daughter once had a coin collection, and asked if the penny
he had found had been of some value.

A smile crept across
the man’s face as he reached into his pocket for the penny and held it out for
her to see. She had seen many pennies before!

What was the point of
this?

“Look at it.” He said.
“Read what it says” She read the words “United States of America.”

“No, not that; read
further.”

“One cent?” “No, keep
reading.”

“In God we Trust?”
“Yes!” “And?”

“And if I trust in
God, the name of God is holy, even on a coin. Whenever I find a coin I see that
inscription. It is written on every single United States coin, but we never seem
to notice it! God drops a message right in front of me telling me to trust Him?
Who am I to pass it by? When I see a coin, I pray, I stop to see if my trust IS
in God at that moment. I pick the coin up as a response to God; that I do trust
in Him. For a short time, at least, I cherish it as if it were gold. I think it
is God’s way of starting a conversation with me. God is patient
and pennies are plentiful!

When I was out
shopping today, I found a penny on the sidewalk. I stopped and picked it up, and
realized that I had been worrying and fretting in my mind about things I cannot
change. I read the words, “In God We Trust,” and had to laugh. Yes, God, I get
the message.

It seems that I have
been finding an inordinate number of pennies in the last few months, but then,
pennies are plentiful!

And God is patient...

(Unfortunately I do not know the source of this
story. If you know please email me so that I can acknowledge.)